Associated Press/Julie Jacobson
New York Mets pitcher Tom Glavine delivers against the St. Louis Cardinals during the first inning Wednesday at Shea Stadium. Glavine picked up career win 297.

By MIKE FITZPATRICK
AP Baseball Writer
NEW YORK — Tom Glavine nearly gave the New York Mets their first no-hitter — with a major explanation attached.
Glavine earned his 297th win, pitching one-hit ball for six innings in a rain-shortened shutout to lead New York past the St. Louis Cardinals 2-0 on Wednesday night.
Scott Rolen’s second-inning infield single was the only hit off Glavine, who walked two and struck out one in his 25th shutout.
“He wants it the real way. He don’t want the asterisk by it,” teammate David Wright said. “He’ll live. He’ll take the win I’m sure.”
Wright hit a two-run homer off winless Anthony Reyes in the first, and the NL East leaders made it stand up for their fifth victory in six games.
After walking Aaron Miles with two outs in the second, Glavine (7-5) retired his final 13 batters. The 41-year-old left-hander threw his 56th complete game and first since a two-hit shutout of Colorado on Sept. 29, 2005. He also improved to 20-6 in 37 starts against St. Louis.
“I hope he’s back on track — I think he is,” Mets manager Willie Randolph said.
It was Glavine’s second one-hitter, both with the Mets, and the first time New York allowed only one hit in a weather-shortened game.
The Mets, born in 1962, have never pitched a no-hitter. This would have been quite a way to change that.
Back in the lineup after missing two starts with a bruised left foot, Rolen hit a grounder down the third-base line with one out in the second. Wright made a backhand stop and tried an off-balance throw, but it was way wide and Rolen beat the play easily.
“If I would have known it would have been a rain-shortened outing, I would have tried a little harder,” Wright said, joking. “I was giving Tom a hard time. Maybe next outing.”
The start was delayed 54 minutes by rain, and heavy showers returned in the fifth. Umpires halted play before New York came to bat in the sixth, and the game was called after a 91-minute delay.
“They were talking like two hours of rain, a lot of stuff kicking around,” Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said.
Paul Lo Duca singled off Reyes (0-10) in the first. With two outs, Wright drove a 1-0 pitch 425 feet to right-center for his 13th home run and first since June 9. The Mets hung on and moved to 5-1 this season against St. Louis, who beat them in a seven-game NL championship series last October.
“It’s my luck right now. It’s just biting me,” Reyes said. “It was a bad pitch. He was looking for it and he hit it.”
Demoted to the minors last month, Reyes is winless in 12 major league starts since he tossed a gem in Game 1 of the World Series last year as a rookie, pitching into the ninth inning for a 7-2 victory over Detroit.
The right-hander has dropped 12 straight regular-season decisions, tying Bill Kissinger’s franchise record set from 1896-97. The Cardinals, who didn’t score in Reyes’ previous start, either, have managed only 29 runs in his 12 outings this year — just 14 while he was on the mound. That’s the worst run support in the majors.
“He’s pitched better than his record. Today was a good example. It’s difficult to accept. He deserves better,” La Russa said. “He pitched better than we hit. We made a lot of soft outs. Glavine had a lot to do with that, but it’s happened before.”
Glavine got some defensive help from speedy rookie Carlos Gomez, who robbed Juan Encarnacion of extra bases with a leaping catch in the left-field corner in the fourth. Gomez banged his back against the fence and grimaced after throwing the ball back to the infield.
Gomez also made a nice grab on Miles’ drive in the fifth.
Glavine has won consecutive outings after going 0-4 in five starts from May 24 to June 16 — and he was hit hard in his final two appearances during that stretch.
After getting roughed up at Yankee Stadium, Glavine worked on his mechanics and tempo. Now, he’s allowed one run and seven hits in his past 14 innings, against Oakland and St. Louis.
“It’s a lot of me making better pitches and a little bit of me having better luck,” Glavine said.
The two-time Cy Young Award winner is closing in on becoming the 22nd major league pitcher to win 300 games.Notes: It was New York’s seventh shutout this season. The Cardinals were blanked for the eighth time, tied for most in the majors. ... Cardinals CF and leadoff batter So Taguchi grounded to second all three times up, ending his hitting streak at a career-best 18 games. ... Wright also homered off Reyes in the 2006 NLCS. ... Mets LHP Dave Williams (neck surgery) pitched 6 1-3 innings for Triple-A New Orleans in a rehab start. He allowed two runs and six hits against Omaha.

There are more honors for Stephanie Hartquist as the Homer Central junior catcher was named to the NYSSCOGS Class A All-State Third-Team softball squad.
Hartquist hit .591 (39-for-66) with seven home runs, five triples, seven doubles, 19 RBIs, 30 runs scored and six stolen bases. She also drew 11 walks when teams looked to take her bat out of the offensive equation.
She is a two-time OSHL Freedom Division Player of the Year.
Harquist is one of just four Section 3 players selected this season. East Syracuse-Minoa senior shortstop Nalin Bennett, the co-player of the year with Hartquist this spring, was a NYSSCOGS first-team selection with New Hartford first baseman Vicki Antanavige and Vernon-Verona-Sherrill senior shortstop Devon Croll each named to the fourth team.
Tappan Zee senior catcher Julie Pacino was the Class A Player of the Year while Laurie Ciuffetelli of South Glens Falls was the Coach of the Year. A total of 51 players received first-team to fifth-team honors.
There were two Section 4 players from Elmira Heights Edison to received NYSSCOGS Class C All-State honors. Senior shortstop Brittany Schrock was a Second-Team selection while senior centerfielder Morgan Engelbert was a Fourth-Team selection.

SUNY Cortland senior women’s track and field standout Christina Acquaviva has been selected as a 2007 ESPN the Magazine national College Division women’s track and field/cross country third-team Academic All-American.
The Academic All-America teams are selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). The College Division national team consists of all Division II, Division III and NAIA schools in the United States and Canada.
Acquaviva was initially voted to the District I College Division all-academic first team, which made her eligible for national consideration. District I consists of schools in New York, New England and five Canadian provinces. The former Utica Proctor scholastic start is one of only 45 student-athletes named to the national team, including only two from schools in District I.
An adolescent education (biology) major, Acquaviva had a 3.34 cumulative grade point average entering the spring semester. She won two outdoor NCAA Division III track and field titles in the heptathlon and 100-meter hurdles this past spring and finished her career as a seven-time All-American. She was also the indoor national runner-up in the 55-meter hurdles this past winter.
Acquaviva’s All-America performances also include fourth and fifth-place finishes in the heptathlon as a junior and sophomore, respectively, along with seventh-place showings in both the 55-meter hurdles (indoor) and 100-meter hurdles (outdoor) as a sophomore.
Among her accomplishments are school records in the heptathlon, pentathlon, 55-meter hurdles, 100-meter hurdles and javelin (new specs). She was also named the Most Outstanding Athlete of the Meet at the 2007 ECAC Division III Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships and finished her career with a total of 11 SUNY Athletic Conference individual titles.